Gov. Ralph Northam says while Virginia's coronavirus cases overall have not been showing large increases, far Southwest Virginia has been seeing a spike.
The percentage of positive cases across the state is 5.1%, but far Southwest Virginia stands at about 9%. The Virginia Dept. of Health says the spike is mainly due to small gatherings where people are not practicing social distancing as well as some spillover from increasing cases in neighboring Tennessee.
Northam says that when gathering with people from outside your immediate household, face coverings and maintaining social distancing is highly recommended. He added that if cases begin to spike in far Southwest Virginia, some business modifications may have to be reinstated.
The Governor also gave some guidance for Halloween activities this weekend, saying that Virginians need to take precautions and make good choices, such as avoiding large crowds.
Northam announced that the Rebuild Virginia program has added $30 million in federal CARES act funding to help small businesses and non-profit organizations with grants up to $100,000.
An additional $116 million has been given to colleges and universities in the state to help with PPE, testing, and other COVID precautions.
Virginia has seen a total of 176,754 coronavirus cases. That's up 1,345 cases from yesterday. There have been 3,616, up 16 from the previous day. Approximately 20,000 tests are being performed each day in the state.
Northam also noted that more than 2 million Virginians so far have taken advantage of early voting.
More on this story from our media partner, ABC 13 - WSET.